Biofuels and Big Corn: When Fuel Devours Food

The promise of biofuels as a renewable energy source collided with harsh realities in 2008 when global food prices soared, sparking riots and unrest. Leaked analyses revealed that biofuel demand was responsible for about 75% of the food price spike, as vast quantities of corn were diverted from food to fuel production. This shift disproportionately impacted the poor, exacerbating hunger and social instability.

Corn ethanol’s energy return is marginal, yielding only about 1.3 times the energy invested in growing and processing it. This low efficiency questions its environmental benefits. Additionally, fertilizer runoff from intensive corn cultivation creates oxygen-depleted 'dead zones' in rivers and coastal waters, harming aquatic life and fisheries.

Political alliances between agribusiness and policymakers have secured subsidies and mandates that keep biofuel demand high, often at the expense of sustainability and food security. While research into cellulosic ethanol offers hope, it remains costly and technologically immature.

Understanding biofuels requires looking beyond green rhetoric to the social, environmental, and political dynamics shaping their use.

For comprehensive studies on biofuel impacts, consult articles from agricultural and environmental journals. 2 3